


Homemade Meals

by DraiochtEve



Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: F/M, Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers, Fluff, Gender-Neutral Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy XIV), M/M, No Spoilers, One Shot, POV Second Person, Pre-Relationship, Short One Shot, kinda oblivious WoL, more sandwiches!, overworking WoL, reader POV
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-15
Updated: 2019-07-15
Packaged: 2020-06-29 05:27:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19823485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DraiochtEve/pseuds/DraiochtEve
Summary: A short one shot where the Exarch cares about the WoL and keeps them well fed. Inspired by a tweet! Link in notes.





	Homemade Meals

Your feet dragged as you entered your room, the aches of a long day sinking in. Potions and cures did wonders, but they weren’t perfect and the injuries you sustained during the day had added up quickly. Food and rest were all that was on your mind as you tossed aside your armor and sighed as you saw the sweat and bloodstains on your undershirt. You’d slip into something cleaner after your belly stopped aching.

Your eyes scanned the room and caught sight of a large basket resting on the table. Several tired moments passed until realization hit you. You knew that basket as well as the cloth that was gently folded within it. Excitedly, you lept towards it and grabbed the note left next to it, it’s fine cursive almost seeming like another language, but one you had grown familiar with over the last several weeks. 

_Dearest Warrior of Darkness,_

_You have been working so diligently for the Crystarium and I cannot thank you enough, my friend. Your presence is a blessing to us all and we are forever in your debt. However, once again I have been informed that you have been neglecting your meals. Within are several sandwiches that you may store and eat at your leisure for the next week. You may leave the basket with Lyna to be replenished if needed. Your health is of the utmost priority and I please ask that you take care of yourself better._

_-Exarch_

You felt warmth pool in your chest along with an empty feeling growing in your belly. Part of you felt bad making others worry about you because you focused too heavily on your tasks, but you enjoyed that someone cared enough to keep an eye on you. You pondered who noticed that you had skipped meals. The past several days you had been in the woods alone so no one should have been aware. Did you look malnourished? You then recalled the Exarch’s scrying portal and nodded in understanding. It off put you slightly that he kept an eye on you, but it seemed he did it in earnest and caring.

Just as you placed your hand over the basket, your head began to pound and your senses dulled, the echo ripping your consciousness away. White clouded your vision and the room faded away as your eyes slammed shut. When you opened your eyes, you were in the Ocular, the Crystal Exarch having just entered the room with a large bag in his arms. You took note of how focused he seemed to be, walking immediately to the door on the right-hand side of the room. Curious, you followed closely behind and gawked at the small kitchen-like area hidden within. It wasn’t as extravagant as you thought it ought to have looked, but the simple table, cabinets, and stove did make it seem more homely as compared to the main room.  
  
The Exarch placed the bag on the table and moved to wash his hands, giving you a chance to peek inside. You smiled when you realized all the ingredients needed for the sandwiches you often looked forward to were snugly packed in it and then felt a flutter in your chest. You had always assumed one of the folks at the Mean had prepared the food for you and this vision was shattering that belief. Had all the meals left in your room been made by the Exarch?

You turned your attention back to him as he patted his hands dry on a towel and sighed before rolling his shoulders. As he walked around the room, you took a moment to attempt to peek under his mysterious hood, only to be let down that even with the echo, whatever magic he used to hide his face still worked. With a frown, you backed up and moved back to the table, waiting for him to continue. Before he did, he retrieved the basket and the picnic cloth from a lower cabinet and prepared it, humming a gentle tune as he did so.

The Exarch seemed surprisingly joyful at this moment, a small smile gracing his lips. Did he enjoy cooking? You couldn’t recall ever seeing him prepare food, let alone consume anything beyond a tonic once or twice. Maybe a hobby of his?

Once satisfied with the basket, he moved onto the actual food prep, carefully slicing and organizing ingredients into diverse combinations and constantly pausing to place his crystal hand in front of his mouth in thought. It surprised you how much time and deliberate planning he was taking and making for such a simple task.

He seemed to genuinely care about your nutrition intake. Each sandwich had a protein, hearty vegetables of some kind, and fillings that served some role in minerals or vitamins. Far healthier than any sandwich you had prepared for yourself, which had the bare minimum to hold your stomach off primarily. You also had to admit they were far tastier than anything you made for yourself. 

You smacked your lips in wanting as you stayed and observed, locked into the vision and ogling the food. If you could sense your stomach at this moment, it would have likely been roaring for a bite. How long was this memory going to last? It was almost like a form of torture, but watching the Exarch’s hands work gave you some ease. Even more so when you caught a proud smile on his face as he finished several of the sandwiches. It made a happiness bubble inside of you and you couldn’t help but smile, though you weren’t entirely sure why you felt that way. It wasn’t happiness for the food, it was happiness for _him_. It caught you a little off guard and you settled that you’d have to ponder on what it all meant later.

He clapped his hands together and wiped them on a towel before beginning to place the finished ones in their basket, repeatedly taking them out gingerly to rearrange them until he was satisfied with the appearance. Just as he turned to work on others, his elbow bumped into a lettuce head harshly, which then knocked over a jar and a couple of tomatoes off the table. The jar shattered, contents spilling out and you jumped in surprise, instinctively backing away from the mess despite it not being able to touch you. The Exarch tilted his head back and groaned loudly at his own fumble before sighing and walking away to get cleaning supplies. You gave him a sympathetic look and the vision faded to white, reality coming back to you with a painful jab in your skull. 

You held your head in your hand and blinked away the fuzz in your mind and looked once more at the basket. The growl of your stomach ever-present, you couldn’t help but said a small thank you in the room with the hopes Exarch was watching and reached for the first of many sandwiches. You’d have to bring the basket back tomorrow as you had full intention of eating them all tonight, your hunger endless. Maybe you’d try to cook up something of your own to leave as a thank you gift inside? It was the least you could do to repay the kindness even if you weren't sure he would eat it. You sighed contently at your full belly, and settled on asking Lyna in the morning what would be appropriate to make. The last two sandwiches that escaped your grasps were carefully stored away for tomorrow and your hand ran over the basket, tired mind wandering.  
  
What had you done to deserve personal homemade meals from the Exarch?

**Author's Note:**

> Written in between dungeon runs and inspired by this tweet https://twitter.com/ashiinu/status/1150599353704169473
> 
> Short, sweet, straight to the point. i think it turned out cute and honestly, we need to all thank our boi for keeping us fed!
> 
> Thank you for reading!


End file.
